Companies Are Developing Products Around Amazon Reorder Technologies

If you could automate anything, what would you choose? A survey of the Netrush office showed that our staff’s top picks overwhelmingly consisted of cooking, driving, and cleaning. While a real-life Rosey the Robot may be a ways away, a handful of companies are attempting to tackle one of 21st-century-life’s most prominent activities: shopping. Utilizing Amazon Dash technology in particular, the re-ordering process for everyday replenishables may become even simpler than it already is.

WePlenish, a smart container manufacturer, launched their Kickstarter campaigntoday, crowdfunding a product that exists solely to reorder replenishable products from Amazon. Without pushing a button or using their voice, users will have products automatically reordered on Amazon when the WePlenish container senses low stock.

Fully automatic reordering isn’t brand new — back in 2016, Brita announced a Wi-Fi enabled water pitcher and GE released dishwashers that can automatically reorder filters and detergent using Amazon Dash. The addition of these products is thanks to Amazon’s Dash Replenishment Service, a set of APIs for product manufacturers that enables automatic reordering.

While Amazon is taking a third-party approach, Target has announced a competing product line called Target Fetch, a line of smart products that auto-reorder household goods. Target is starting with a paper towel holder, toilet paper spindle, and soap pump. However, Amazon may have the upper hand: Target Fetch is currently crowdfunding on Indiegogo, and has met less than half of their $10,000 goal with five days remaining.